


A Wish, A Dream, A Broken Heart

by HiyokoDeservedBetter



Category: OMORI (Video Game)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-24
Updated: 2021-01-24
Packaged: 2021-03-16 02:40:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,025
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28949082
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HiyokoDeservedBetter/pseuds/HiyokoDeservedBetter
Summary: In Aubrey’s opinion, life seemed to move way too slow. Well, it had been that way for 4 years. A burden of guilt. Even the mere mention of a jump rope made her want to bash someone with her bat. She wanted someone to blame. For a long time, she blamed Basil.Another post good ending fic, from the prospective of Aubrey, Kel, and Hero, in that order. I know I’m not creative but I just,,,,, love this game
Comments: 2
Kudos: 57





	1. Aubrey’s Chapter - A Battered Bat

In Aubrey’s opinion, life seemed to move way too slow. Well, it had been that way for 4 years. A burden of guilt. Even the mere mention of a jump rope made her want to bash someone with her bat. She wanted someone to blame. For a long time, she blamed Basil.  
But then  
Then  
Then  
Then  
Aubrey woke up with a start, breathing way too fast. Her dream was horrible. Truly horrible. But if she had known what was to come next, she would’ve chosen to stay in that dream forever. She pushed Basil into the water, and they were alone. She just watched as the frantic ripples died down, and instead of grief, the only feeling she felt was one of annoyance. Now the only person who she could blame for Mari’s death… was herself.  
Aubrey wiped off the puddle of sweat that had appeared while she slept on her forehead. And she realized something was wrong. She whipped her head over to where Sunny slept. He was gone. Aubrey sprang to her feet with a start, all semblance of sleep erased from her mind. She was about to scream for Sunny, as she was too tense to think about how late it was. Then she heard a loud shout, and her heart fell. It was from Basil’s room. She looked over at Hero and Kel’s peaceful figures. She took a quiet breath and quickly strode over to Basil’s room, her anxiety rising and rising until she could barely hear her own breath over the sound of her pounding heart.  
She stood in front of the door. She tried the handle, but it was locked. For a brief moment, she felt useless. She dug a bobby-pin out of her jacket pocket and began picking the lock silently, straining to hear what was being said in the room.  
“That’s so mean!” A voice exclaimed, practically in tears. Basil. “Ah… there’s something all around us now.” It was as if he’d flipped a switch. Calm, unbothered. Maybe she was imagining the terror in Basil’s voice. “Can you see it, Sunny? There’s no way out of this, is there?” So Sunny was in there. Why was the door locked? Maybe they were just… talking. But the sinking feeling in Aubrey’s chest didn’t ebb.  
She kept picking the lock.  
The doorknob jiggled, as if someone was trying to open it.  
“Where are you going?” asked Basil in an eerily quiet voice that caused Aubrey to freeze for a moment as goosebumps shot all over her skin. “Stop trying to leave me!” A loud shove. A quiet whimper.  
“I don’t want to fight you.” Whispered a hoarse, scratchy voice. Aubrey hadn’t even realized how much she missed it until this moment.  
“Stop it stop it STOP IT STOP IT STOP IT!” Basil screamed. Aubrey figured Hero would at least be awake by now. Kel was an infamously heavy sleeper. She didn’t want to deal with him right now anyway. “I don’t… want to be… alone. Not again.” Basil whispered frantically. Aubrey let out a quiet scoff. Maybe you should’ve thought about that before defacing the only memory they had left of Mari, freak. Old habits died hard, Aubrey thought as she pushed that particular thought away and tried to focus on picking the lock. “You can’t leave me… not again.” Tentative footsteps. “No… you wouldn’t leave me. That’s not like you, Sunny!” Aubrey didn’t like the way Basil sounded. His voice so calm and yet so terrified. So angry and yet so joyful. It was all a front. God, why was this lock so hard to pick?  
“It’s something behind you again, isn’t it?”  
Basil was speaking complete gibberish. Something behind Sunny? Aubrey thought he’d finally snapped. Sunny was in danger. That’s all Aubrey could focus on.  
“Ah! There it is now!” Basil chuckled, like this ‘Something’ was a dog coming when its name was called. “Do you see it? STAY AWAY! STAY AWAY FROM SUNNY!” Aubrey heard quiet whispers from the living room. Good. She could use reinforcements for when she managed to unlock this door. Each movement felt agonizing, like each second the door was locked Sunny was one breath closer to death. “I’ll protect you no matter what Sunny. You can count on me!”  
Hero and Kel ran toward the door.  
“What’s happening?” Kel whispered, panicked.  
“Why do you think I know?” Aubrey snarled back. “Move back. You’re crowding me.” Hero rolled his eyes. He was treating them like they were 12. He always had to be the mediator, didn’t he? Mr. Perfect. What did he know?  
“When Something killed Mari… when Something ruined all my photos…” Everyone stiffened. Hero was confused and took a step forward.  
“What is he-“  
“He’s speaking pure gibberish,” Aubrey said, cutting Hero off. “I don’t know what he’s rambling about. Sunny’s in danger. I’m trying my hardest here, I promise.”  
“I didn’t say anything. I didn’t want people to think it was you, Sunny.” Aubrey felt something weird swirl through her head. Something she’d known all along. “Sunny… Sunny wouldn’t do something like that. Don’t worry, Sunny. I’ll save you again! That Something behind you? I’ll get rid of it. Once and for all.”  
Afterward, there was no more talking. Aubrey could hear movement, and the loud breaking of a flower pot.  
“I don’t want to fight you.” Sunny said. There was no response. Aubrey let out a defeated sigh and slammed the Bobby pin on the floor, too worried and distracted to focus on picking the lock.  
“Basil, open the door right now!” Aubrey screamed. Silence.  
“That’s not gonna-“ Kel began. He was cut off with a bloodcurdling scream.  
“SUNNY!” The three of them yelled. Aubrey ran to the living room and grabbed her bat. She kept hitting the door until it broke into a pile of splinters. Polly was there during all of this, but Aubrey was too focused on saving Sunny. She didn’t care about anything else. The four entered Basil’s room. Aubrey’s shoes touched mulch, and looked down at the scattered dirt, flower petals, and the clay pot in confusion. She almost immediately stepped past it as she booked it to Sunny.  
Blood. Lots of blood. So much blood. Too much blood. Aubrey blinked back tears and balled her hands into fists.  
“Basil,” she growled, looking at the kids skinny frame barely illuminated by moonlight. He was covered in small, weak bruises, and Sunny’s blood. He was carrying garden pliers. His gaze was empty. Vacant. The little brat hadn’t realized what he’d done. Aubrey grabbed his shirt and held him off the ground effortlessly. He was light, thin; and weak. Had Aubrey never noticed that before? “You little monster. What did you do?” Polly, Kel, and Hero were calling at each other. Kel and Hero were trying to stop the bleeding as Polly called for help. Aubrey kept glaring at Basil. “Looks like you really were a freak. I bet if I had never introduced you to everyone, Mari would still be alive. You’re a worthless waste of space. And if the world were fair, you’d be the one lying on the floor, bleeding out right now.”  
Aubrey dropped Basil and turned toward Sunny. Her brain was screaming at her to run. Aubrey couldn’t steady herself. She fell to her knees and stared at Sunny’s gouged out, bloody eye.  
“How did we let this happen?” That was the last sentence Aubrey spoke aloud. The last sentence until the truth was revealed. The last sentence before her world shattered like a piece of broken glass. 

Aubrey stared at Basil’s passed out body, looking even smaller in the massive hospital bed. What a wimp. Sunny barely touched him. Basil was the horrible person. The one who ruined the photo album. The one who tarnished the last memories any of them had of Mari. This little monster permanently ruined Sunny’s eye. And yet, even after all of it… Aubrey still would never understand. But, in all honesty, Aubrey never wanted to. Aubrey never wanted to speak to Basil again. And that was final.  
Aubrey took a step away from Basil’s bed. Hero grabbed her arm, grasp firm.  
“Aubrey…” he said quietly. Aubrey tore out of his grasp with ease.  
“I’m visiting Sunny. Don’t touch me again, or Basil won’t be the only one covered in bruises.” Aubrey said sharply. Kel took a step forward.  
“Aubrey-“ Suddenly, the door opened. And Sunny, his thin, short, pale frame, clean bandages wrapped around his head and eye, stepped in. Aubrey was a fool for not noticing. But… Sunny hadn’t been taking care of himself. He hadn’t for a long time. Neither had Basil. It was odd. Why had they fallen into disarray? Did Mari’s death hurt them that much? Was she not the only one suffering?  
“I have to tell you something.” Sunny said simply. His voice probably hadn’t been used in about 4 years. He shut himself in. Pushed everyone else away. But Aubrey couldn’t be mad. She was just happy he was alive.  
And then he spoke more.  
“It… was the night before the recital. 4 years ago.” No. Aubrey hated remembering that day. Why did he have to bring it up? “Mari. She was… yelling at me. I kept screwing up. I wasn’t good enough. Mari made me practice so much my hands bled. I didn’t want to perform. So… I threw my violin. Down the stairs. I tried to leave. Mari stood in front of me. And out of habit, I…” Aubrey knew where this was going. What Basil had said that night finally made sense. She couldn’t help but remember her pushing Basil into the lake. An accident. “I was trying to push her away, but she was just right in front of the stairs, so then…”  
A stunned silence. Aubrey glanced over and saw Hero’s hands had balled into shaky fists. His eyes were filled with a hate she’d never seen on Hero’s face.  
After a couple seconds, Sunny finished. “It was Basil’s idea to hang her.”  
“What?” Kel said after about a minute of the tensest silence Aubrey had ever sat through. “Sunny- that’s- you’re-“ A blur ran at Sunny and punched him in the stomach. Hard. Sunny immediately sank to the floor, grasping his stomach and gagging.  
“You… YOU!” Hero screamed. “YOU MURDERER!” Kel and Aubrey ran at Hero and grabbed both of his arms.  
“Hero! Calm down!” Kel cried as Hero started to kick his feet angrily and desperately in an attempt to escape.  
“How could you?!” Hero roared. “We all loved Mari more then anything, you worthless freak!” Sunny stayed crumpled up on the floor. Aubrey doubted he had the strength to stand.  
“Hero.” Aubrey warned, tightening her grip until her nails dug into his skin. Hero still struggled. She heard movement come from Basil’s bed, and she risked taking her eyes off Hero to look at him. Only one eye was open. The other was too bruised. He took in a sharp breath and closed his eyes again. “Hero, shut up!” Aubrey screamed, using her foot to shove him to the ground. Her and Kel held him as Sunny managed to get to his feet. He was silent as tears streamed down his face.  
Aubrey and Kel looked at each other. In all the years they’d been friends, this was the first time she’d seen Sunny cry. Suddenly a pair of nurses rushed in and said some stuff to Sunny. Aubrey mostly tuned it out as they led Sunny out. Kel and Aubrey waited for a moment before releasing Hero. He let out a scream and stormed out of the room. Kel and Aubrey looked at each other again, and Aubrey nodded. Kel ran out of the room, calling his brothers name. She looked over at Basil. It was his idea to hang Mari? Sunny helped, but… Jeez, Basil was messed up in the head if his first instinct was to frame Mari’s murder as a suicide.  
Aubrey couldn’t decide who she hated more. She cast a significant look at Basil. She thought for a moment. And then another moment.  
“You’re even worse then Sunny. You’re scum.” Aubrey snarled. She didn’t know if he was conscious, and she didn’t care. Aubrey stormed out, tears streaming down her face.  
She wished Mari was here.  
That was always a dangerous train of thought. Thinking about Mari only made Aubrey angry, and with the truth she’d just learned, she was furious enough to cut down a tree with just her bat. She stopped in front of the hospital exit and turned toward Sunny’s room. She walked in, but stayed at the entrance.  
“You know I don’t forgive you, right? I hate Basil more, but I still want to bash your face in.” Aubrey said casually.  
“I don’t expect to be forgiven.” Sunny said simply.  
“Good. Because if I ever forgive you, it’ll be long after you die.” Aubrey replied. She couldn’t help but remembering pushing Basil into the lake. She felt absolutely awful about it. She couldn’t even fathom how Sunny would feel, living with this guilt with every breath he took. “But… I can grasp how you feel. More then Mr. Perfect and Airhead ever could.” Sunny remained silent. “Look, I doubt I can do much, but me and Kel can try to talk to Hero. But trust me, there is no way Hero would ever forgive you. I doubt he even wants to be your friend anymore. It’s a shame, too. You’re all we have left of Mari.” Her teal eyes gleamed dangerously. “So don’t you dare join her.”  
Sunny stayed silent, and his eyes followed Aubrey as she left. She exited the hospital, thinking. She stopped in front of her house, gripping her bat so hard she thought it might break. Aubrey turned the handle and entered her house, staring at her motionless mom. Aubrey scoffed and continued to her room. And she sat down, her thoughts too loud. She laid on the floor. Life was too much and yet somehow not enough.


	2. Kel's Chapter - A Brittle Ball

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kel was worried, to say the least.   
> Hero was acting just like he did when Mari died. His eyes were empty, hollow, and glazed over. He laid on his bed, wrapped in blankets, completely silent.   
> Kel hated this.

Kel was worried, to say the least.   
Hero was acting just like he did when Mari died. His eyes were empty, hollow, and glazed over. He laid on his bed, wrapped in blankets, completely silent.   
Kel hated this.  
But what exactly did he hate? Sunny? Basil? What they did to Mari? He definitely hated that. Kel couldn’t decide how he felt, so he pushed down his feelings and focused on his brother.   
Kel flopped down in the couch, looking at the ceiling dejectedly.   
“What’s wrong with Hero?” his mom asked absentmindedly as she scurried around, picking up Sally’s scattered toys. “He’s acting like Mari died all over again.” Kel sighed. He loved his mom, but she had zero tact. At least he knew where he got it from.   
“He’s, just, uh,” Kel fumbled over his words, trying to think of a convincing lie at a moments notice. “He’s, uh! Just upset about Sunny and Basil being in the hospital! Yeah!” He’d always sucked at lying. He thought his mom would notice and try to pry the truth out of him. But she just nodded and continued cleaning, not interested in continuing the conversation.   
“You should try to cheer up your brother,” his dad called from the kitchen. Kel smelled the faint smell of steak wafting from the kitchen to the living room. Kel shook his head. He wouldn’t say the truth. Couldn’t speak about it. Wouldn’t speak about it.   
This was his burden to bear.   
Kel didn’t want to just sit dejectedly. He had to keep himself busy. That’s how he kept the grief away four years ago, after all. He was confident it would still work this time. He dug his phone from his deep short pockets and scrolled through his contacts before hesitantly landing on Aubrey. Things between them were still tense, even with her flimsy apology. But with Sunny and Basil in the hospital, Hero numb with grief, and Mari.....   
Right. Kel was still used to including her when he thought about his friends, even after four years. Basically, Aubrey was his only option. Well, he had friends from the basketball team, but he wanted to talk to someone who knew about it. He’d never rat out Sunny or Basil to someone they didn’t even know.   
He clicked on Aubrey’s contact and hastily began typing up a message.   
Kel: hey wanna go visit basil and sunny at the hopsipital  
Kel struggled on the last word. As his teachers had always so helpfully reminded him, his spelling was abysmal. He sent the message and the read notification popped up immediately. The three dots appeared, and Kel eagerly stared at his phone, waiting for a text back.   
Aubrey: 1. It’s spelled hospital. 2. I’d bash Basil’s brains out with my bat if I had to see him 3. I’d just make Sunny feel worse 4. I’d make Basil feel like scum and I wouldn’t even feel bad about it  
Kel sighed and rolled his eyes as he read the message. He didn't want to go alone. He just... wanted to talk to someone about all this.   
Kel: u no my spelling is bad  
Kel: we domt have to go to the hospital anyway  
Kel: i just want to talk to you about this  
Kel was about to send a message about Aubrey making it worse anyway, but he quickly erased it, knowing it wouldn’t go over well.   
Aubrey: Ugh. Fine. It’s better then being stuck in this hellhole.   
Aubrey: Where do you wanna go, anyway? I don’t really care where we go, I just don’t want to go anywhere near the pair of murderers  
Kel: oi thats mean  
Kel: whatever i dont wanna fight about this  
Kel: i have two choices  
Kel: pick the one you like the most   
Kel: our old hangout spot  
Kel: or maris grave  
Aubrey didn’t respond immediately, and Kel was worried he overstepped. He started to type an apology, but Aubrey texted back.   
Aubrey: Mari’s grave would probably be the most poetic, huh?  
Aubrey: But I don’t wanna go there. I always end up crying my eyes out, but since I’m really fucking pissed right now, I’d probably bash it to bits instead  
Kel: maybe just dont bring youre bat???  
Aubrey: ....  
Kel: dont u dare  
Aubrey: ....  
Kel: AUBREY  
Aubrey: *your  
Kel: UGHHHHHHHHHHH  
Aubrey: I bring my bat everywhere I go to protect myself from nerds like you  
Kel: hey  
Kel: i thought we made up  
Aubrey: Just because we’re ‘friends’ again doesn’t mean I’m not allowed to tease you   
Kel: well im banning it  
Kel: your no longer aloud to say anything even slightly mean about me  
Kel: period  
Aubrey: How are you doing well in school???  
Kel: im not  
Aubrey: Eh, figures. Anyway, we can meet at our old hangout spot.   
Kel: before u leave  
Kel: quick question   
Aubrey: Don’t overstep your boundaries, kid  
Kel: were the same age???  
Kel: im not even a kid???  
Kel: anyway  
Kel: i just wanna know how ur still so mad  
Kel: we found out the truth a day ago  
Kel: i feel like you shoudve calmed down  
Aubrey: ...  
Aubrey was silent for about 5 minutes. Kel didn’t give up on waiting for a answer, though. He slipped his shoes on and combed his messy hair.   
“I’m going out!” he called to his parents as he opened the door. He waved goodbye and started to walk, but his eyes were drawn to Sunny’s house. It was completely empty. Kel would miss Sunny. He’d already forgiven him for what happened to Mari, so he could miss him all he wanted without feeling guilty about it! As he was turning a corner, he felt his phone buzz. He dug it out and read Aubrey’s message.   
Aubrey: You really don’t get it, huh? Sorry you didn’t care about Mari’s death, but learning the truth about it after 4 YEARS of blaming myself will sting. It’ll sting until the day I die.   
Aubrey: And as for Basil   
Aubrey: ugh I hate typing paragraphs on this tiny screen. We’ll keep discussing it once you get to the lake  
Kel: dont u mean we?  
Aubrey sent a picture.   
Kel: your already there???  
Aubrey: been there since we decided on the location   
Kel: i feel like thats impossile   
Aubrey: Why do you think I was silent for so long?  
Kel: i thought u were just mad  
Aubrey: I mean, yeah, but it’s pretty unsafe for me to type on a scooter, so I stayed silent  
Kel didn’t like the visualization of Aubrey getting hit by a car.   
Kel: please be careful   
Aubrey: Ooo, you’re using please? Have you finally learned what that word means?  
Kel: I mean it, Aubergine.   
Aubrey: WAHAJNAHAHAJAJQJQJQJAJ  
Aubrey: I didn’t know you could use capitalization??? And punctuation???  
Kel: im not that dumb lol  
Aubrey: That goes for you too, though. Don’t walk and text.   
Aubrey: I see those dots. Put the phone down.   
Kel rolled his eyes and stuffed his phone back into his pocket, chuckling slightly. It felt almost comforting knowing Aubrey cared about him. He walked for a couple minutes before seeing the park. He looked over at the vending machine, realizing he was thirsty. He never carried cash on him, though. He remembered the expired Orange Joe incident, though, and knew he was probably better off. He ducked into the park and walked toward the trees, but he turned around when he heard a kid calling his name.   
“Kel!” The teen skidded to a stop in front of him, pushing his messy blond hair away from his green eyes.   
“Oh, hey Jay,” Kel said, smiling, glancing over at the lake’s entrance. Jay was just another kid on the basketball team. His jump shots were better then Kel's though. In public he complimented and told him that someday he’d definitely be a pro. In private he felt really, really jealous. Kel had picked up Mari’s sense of perfectionism like a sponge. He only applied that to sports, though. He couldn’t care less about school, much to his parents dismay. “Practicing, I bet?”   
Jay nodded a quick yes. “Yeah, but I couldn’t really focus. You know Basil, right? That weird kid always getting bullied? I think you guys used to be friends.” Kel felt a little sick. Basil’s bullying had been right in front of his face, and yet he never noticed it. Maybe if he made an effort to stay friends with Basil, this wouldn’t have happened. “I heard he stabbed some kids eye out, and they’re both in the hospital! Crazy, right? I guess the scooter gang was right, he is a freak!” Jay laughed, and Kel scowled.   
“It’s a lot more complicated then that. Don’t gossip if you don’t even know the full story!” Kel snapped. Jay took a step back. “Even if neither of them told me why it happened, Basil’s not the bad guy! After what he went through, the worst possible thing you could do is spread rumors about him!”   
“Why are you sticking up for him now?” Jay retorted. “He’s been bullied for four years, and now you stick up for him? Talk about hypocritical.” He shook his head disapprovingly. Kel was steaming.   
“Why don’t you shut UP?!” he screamed, shoving Jay. Jay stumbled and fell into the sand.   
“Dude, what the heck?”   
Kel didn’t even listen. He stormed off and weaved through the trees, making his way to the lake. Aubrey was sitting on the picnic blanket, its once vivid color now faded after 4 years of being left out in the sun. Aubrey looked up from her phone at Kel.   
“Jeez. Took you long enough.” she said, crossing her arms. Kel sighed and sat down, his expression troubled. Aubrey was silent as well.   
After a moment, Kel spoke up.   
“So, continuing what you were talking about in the texts,” he said casually. Aubrey sighed.   
“Right. Basil. I... don’t want to admit this, but after learning the truth, I don’t feel bad about bullying him. He made Mari’s death worse. He hung her! With her favorite jump rope! On Mewo’s favorite tree! I’m mad at him now, but I think I’d still forgive Sunny. It was an accident. But Basil made it so much more worse. I don’t think I could ever forgive him. Could you?”  
Kel stumbled over his words. He’d already forgiven Sunny, but he hadn’t even thought about Basil. Maybe he didn’t want to think about what Basil did. What they both did. In Kel's mind, they were innocent.   
But thinking about it, he hated Basil. He hated Sunny too, but it was easier to forgive him. Just like Aubrey said, it was an accident.   
“I don’t know,” he said after a moment. “It’s really complicated. I... haven’t thought about how I felt at all. I’ve been focusing on Hero. It’s like he lost Mari all over again. I can’t read minds. I can’t comfort people. I’m not good at helping people. Because if I was, maybe Mari wouldn’t have-“ He cut himself off. “Right. I still think that she killed herself, but that was just a lie.”  
“A lie that Basil and Sunny spun. A lie that made everything so much worse.” Aubrey replied, laying down in the blanket and staring up at the sky. “You haven’t thought about it at all? Kel, I don’t know if this is obvious to you, but Hero was a ticking time bomb. He toughened himself up, but one bad thing, and he shattered all over again.” Kel's head spun.   
“He was gone at collage for 6 months! How was it meant to be obvious?” Aubrey held her head in her hands.   
“You’re the most blindest person I’ve ever met,” she groaned.   
“Even blinder then an actual blind person?” Aubrey mulled over that question for a moment before nodding sagely.   
“Definitely.”  
“Well, I consider that an achievement!” Kel replied pridefully.   
“You shouldn’t.” Aubrey replied, laughing. There was a gap in the conversation as the two fell into a 3 minute long silence.   
“I’ve already forgiven Sunny,” he said, cutting through the silence like a knife. “I think I might hate him, but we were best friends! We... are best friends. So that feeling won’t last forever! I just have to process how I feel. Maybe I should start worrying about myself, first and foremost.”  
“Right. I remember one time Basil lost control of his bike and crashed into you. You broke your arm, but the first thing you did was check if Basil was okay. You’ve worried about others for so long. I think you could learn to mind your own business.” Aubrey commented throwing a rock into the lake. The two watched the ripples spread across the water.   
“Basil,” he muttered, throwing a bigger rock into the lake and watching the splash that followed. “I... what you said about him. I think I agree with that. I hate him, to be honest. Really, really hate him! I hate what he did to Sunny. I hate what he did to Mari. I hate what his selfish actions did to our friendship. I hate that if fate had been slightly crueler, the both of them would probably be dead. I hate that fact that I hate him!” Kel cried angrily. He hadn’t really vented to anyone after they all drifted apart. Sunny fulfilled that role, but Sunny shut himself away. So Kel stopped venting at people. Now that he had done it for the first time since Mari’s death, it felt better then he expected.   
“Do you still care about him?” Aubrey asked quietly.   
“...Yeah. I know he did what he did so Sunny wouldn’t get in trouble. That’s admirable. I just wish... we hadn’t grown up.” Aubrey’s teal gaze turned to ice.   
“I could never care about him again.” she admitted, her teeth grit. “But you’ve always been the one who cared the most about everyone.”  
“Other then Mari.” they said at the same time. Kel laid beside Aubrey and gazed at the clouds alongside her.   
“Have you... been able to sleep?” Kel asked quietly. Aubrey looked at him quizzically.   
“Yeah. Dreams are rare, nightmares rarer still. For me, anyway.”  
“I stayed up all night last night.” he admitted. “Whenever I closed my eyes, I kept picturing Mari’s crumpled body at the bottom of the stairs. I’m exhausted. Both physically and mentally.”  
“Then sleep.” Aubrey said simply. “There’s sunlight, fresh air, and a friend beside you. It should be easier then being stuck with a smoldering Hero all night.” Kel looked at Aubrey, and smiled warmly. She gave a small smile in return.   
“...Thanks.” he murmured, his eyes drifting closed already. The last thing he felt before drifting off was Aubrey resting her head on his shoulder.   
“The quiet gives me time to think.” she said quietly, and Kel's thoughts focused on that as he drifted off. 

The dream he had wasn’t bad, despite his fears. Kel was at the lake with all his friends. Hero, Aubrey, Sunny, Basil, Mari. They were all happy together. Kel looked at Basil. The green haired boy was adding sunflowers to his flower crown.   
“What do you think, Sunny? These flowers reminded me of you!” he said warmly. Sunny grabbed one of the extra sunflowers from Basil, and looked at it. He gave one of his small, rare smiles, and Basil beamed.   
Kel took a deep breath in and looked at Basil.   
“I forgive you,” he said quietly. He blinked in surprise, then smiled sadly.   
“I don’t deserve it.”   
“Whether you think you deserve it or not, I still do. You’re my friend. No mistake can change that.” Kel said firmly. Basil thought for a moment, and the world morphed. It was just him and Basil now, standing in an endless white space. Basil’s green hair shifted to blonde, his flower crown shifted to just a single flower. Wait, no. There was a second flower, a loud and bright orange.   
They smiled at each other. Despite any bumps in the road, Kel knew everyone could still be friends.  
That was his dream.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you again for reading! All and any comments and kudos are appreciated! Hope you have a great day! Also Kel hurts so much to write,,,, he’s my son,,,,,

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! Amahshsgwhabaga this is my first fic and it’s probably not all that great. I’ll try to update it as inspiration strikes me, but I make zero promises. I’ll definitely finish it, though. Thanks for reading!


End file.
